Condition 1: Single Workshop on Innovative Literacy Practices
Condition 2: Workshop plus Curriculum Materials
Condition 3: Workshop, Curriculum Materials, plus Expert Peer-Coaching
Data from more than 3500 students taught by 134 teachers in 64 high schools showed that coaching by an expert peer teacher significantly strengthened implementation of recommended instructional practices compared to a workshop alone and to a workshop plus curriculum materials. Recommended instructional practices included:
- Teacher modeling
- Preparation for reading with vocabulary & background knowledge
- Student team discussions of shared reading
- Opportunities for self-selected silent reading
The study also finds that use of the recommended practices resulted in significantly higher student reading achievement gains, compared to more traditional classrooms using worksheet-driven drill and teacher-centered instruction.
Current Work
Projects are underway on “Content Literacy” to develop lessons on reading comprehension strategies for textbooks in the core academic subjects of history, mathematics, science and literature. A variety of teacher support approaches are being examined, including use of interdisciplinary teacher teams to coordinate and reinforce lessons on common strategic reading themes with particular application in each subject.
Schools across the country also are implementing the Talent Development High Schools Literacy Curriculum, supported by start-up training and classroom-based coaching.
Findings
Supporting High School Teachers with Instructional Approaches for Adolescent Struggling Readers
Marcia Davis and James McPartland This paper details findings from the first two years of the study.